This invention relates generally to athletic equipment and more particularly concerns a server for athletic balls such as baseballs and softballs.
A variety of training devices have been developed for serving balls for batting practice. Some merely suspend a ball or support a ball in a fixed location in a strike zone. Such conditions rarely, if ever, occur in competition. Others pitch balls directly toward the batter by use of a lever or chute. This leaves little reaction time, especially for younger athletes. Some guide balls through a vertical chute onto a leaf spring to indirectly bounce the ball toward the batter. While this affords greater reaction time, the loss of downward velocity in the guide chute and minimal resilience afforded by the leaf spring limit the bounce trajectory severely. Consequently, the batter must stand too close to the server to take advantage of the reaction time. Another device uses a trampoline type bounce mechanism instead of a leaf spring to achieve a more vertical bounce, eliminating the need for the batter to track and time the approach of the ball to the hitting zone. This device does not solve the problems of loss of ball velocity in the chute and limited bounce and sacrifices tracking and timing skills which are needed under competitive conditions. Moreover, none of these devices can serve the dual functions of serving balls for batting and fielding practice since none of them provides adequate variably controllable trajectories over a range from slow pitch or pop-up to ground balls.
It is, therefore, an object of this invention to provide a ball server which tosses a ball toward a batter or fielder. Another object of this invention is to provide a ball server which can be used to simulate slow pitch ball trajectories, ground ball trajectories and various trajectories therebetween. A further object of this invention is to provide a ball server which affords reasonable reaction time to the batter or fielder. Yet another object of this invention is to provide a ball server which provides a relatively long distance trajectory in comparison to known bounce devices. It is also an object of this invention to provide a ball server which requires no contact of the ball with chutes or guides during its vertical descent. Still another object of this invention is to provide a ball server which is adjustable to permit a wide range of bounce trajectories. An additional object of this invention is to provide a ball server which automatically cyclically releases balls one at a time without need of an additional signal from the batter, fielder or coach.
In accordance with the invention, an athletic ball server is provided. The support structure of the server is preferably a collapsible tripod. An elongated inclined tray is mounted atop the structure and supports a linear array of balls. A gate at the low end of the tray cyclically releases balls one at a time from the array to gravity. One edge of a trampoline-like platform is mounted by a pivot to the support structure. A central portion of the platform lies beneath the low end of the tray and is aligned to bounce a ball which has been released. An adjustable linkage, preferably an eye-bolt, is connected between the support structure and the platform. The linkage allows the angular position of the plane defined by the pivotal axis of the pivot and the distal edge of the platform to be varied. By adjusting the length of the linkage, it is possible to achieve any desired trajectory of the bounced ball from a pop-up or slow pitch trajectory to a ground ball trajectory.
Preferably, the platform includes a frame with an elastic member stretched tautly on the frame. Most preferably, the elastic member is a plurality of rubber bands arranged in two weaves of transverse layers with a first weave being a first sequential alternating warp and weft assembly of rubber bands beginning at any corner of the frame and a second weave being a second sequential alternating assembly of warp and weft rubber bands beginning at any corner of the frame. The use of rubber bands provides a highly resilient platform with easily replaceable resilient components. Best angular control has been achieved using a second adjustable linkage, also preferably an eye-bolt, spaced apart from the first adjustable linkage and connected between the support structure and the platform. The first and second linkages are cooperable for setting the angular position of the platform to achieve the desired trajectory of the bounced ball.
The resilience or bounce of the platform can be maximized by third and fourth adjustable linkages connected in spaced apart relationship between the support structure and the distal edge of the platform. The length of the third and fourth linkages is adjusted to pull the distal edge of the platform downwardly and tauten the platform against the resistance offered by the first and second adjustable linkages. The third and fourth adjustable linkages may each also be turnbuckles.
The gate consists of a wheel mounted proximate the low end of the tray for rotation on a shaft which is transverse to the elongated tray. The wheel has its circumference aligned with and obstructing travel of the linear array of balls in the tray. The circumference has a slot for receiving balls one at a time from the linear array and for releasing the received ball at the low end of the tray as the wheel rotates. A drive motor is connected to the shaft and a power source energizes the drive motor to rotate the wheel at a known angular velocity so as to serve a desired number of balls per minute. Preferably, the wheel is formed from a pair of circular discs symmetrically spaced on the shaft from a plane aligned with the linear array of balls. A plurality of bearings are mounted for rotation on a plurality of horizontal pins connected between the discs and angularly displaced along the circumference. At least one of the bearings is always in contact with the lowest ball of the array not received in the slot during rotation of the wheel. This minimizes the resistance applied to the wheel by the balls, thus increasing the life of the motor and power source and decreasing the noise level of the server during operation. Most preferably, each of the bearings is itself a plurality of beads disposed on each of the pins.
Preferably, the tray is formed by a pair of rods spaced apart to support the array of balls therebetween with the wheel disposed between the rods. The shaft has its axis positioned below the rods and the slot has a depth such that the ball received in the slot maintains contact with the rods rather than the bottom of the slot. Thus, the wheel truly serves as a gate rather than a carriage. This reduces the weight driven by the motor and allows the balls to continue in a free-rolling pattern on the rods even while they are in the slot, resulting in a more smoothly operating, long life server.